Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 292: Giving You a Chance_1

Chapter 292: Chapter 292: Giving You a Chance_1

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren came home and took another hot bath. Lying on the warm kang bed and listening to the rain outside, they fell asleep comfortably.

Meanwhile, Chang Lian and Lady Dong drank the thick Ginger Soup. They really didn’t expect that the soup boiled by mother would taste so awful. The gratitude they felt was soon replaced by anxiety. Mother was clearly upset, utterly oblivious to the fact that someone who can’t cook naturally couldn’t make good Ginger Soup either. After a simple wash, they didn’t dare to sleep, tossing and turning, both aware that the matter wasn’t over yet.

Early the next day, when Zhulan and Zhou Shuren returned home, the atmosphere at the Zhou residence had changed. Children got up early and were running around in the yard, while the adults were busy with their own chores.

Zhulan woke up to find that breakfast was already prepared. After washing up, the whole family waited for Zhulan and Zhou Shuren to have breakfast.

Breakfast was shepherd’s purse buns and millet porridge, accompanied by the pickles made by Lady Li. The simple meal was delicious to Zhulan and Zhou Shuren.

Everyone at the two tables, except for Chang Lian and Lady Dong, ate well.

No wonder, as Zhou Shuren had already scolded the eldest and second house, Chang Lian and Lady Dong, aside from standing outside the main gate for a while, didn’t say anything else. This silent treatment was the most torturous.

Chang Lian, seeing that father didn’t even glance at him and only spoke to his eldest brother during the meal, clutched his chopsticks, unable to swallow a single mouthful of the millet porridge in his bowl.

Lady Dong was too frightened to eat. Apart from a slight smile towards her eldest sister-in-law, the mother-in-law either ignored or showed a cold face to the second sister-in-law and her, making Lady Dong turn pale with her head lowered.

After the meal, Zhou Shuren told the eldest and second to go about their work; Rongchuan to the Academy and to ask for a leave of absence for Mingyun, leaving Chang Lian behind.

As for Zhulan’s table, she had Lady Dong clean up by herself. Turning to Lady Li, she said, "I see you’ve sun-dried quite a lot of wild vegetables in the yard. Did you pick them outside of town?"

The Zhou family mansion was a distance away on foot, and it took even more time to go outside the city to gather wild vegetables.

Lady Li shook her head. "Mother, I bought these with Silver. The wild vegetables are really cheap in the market now. I wanted to pick them myself at first, but it’s too far to go outside the city. So I thought it would be better to spend Silver to buy them. A large basketful of wild vegetables from the market costs only Three coins."

Zhulan simply asked out of curiosity, "Hmm, wild vegetables are indeed cheap. Then buy more. When we go to the capital in winter, we can still have some green vegetables. This year, we can dry more."

Lady Li became anxious. Mother wasn’t at home again. "Mother."

Zhulan cut off Lady Li’s words with a smile, "What’s the rush? Mother gives you her word. No one else will be taken, but we will surely take both of you."

Lady Li grinned with a smile. Mother would take their family to the capital— the capital! "Thank you, Mother."

"It’s getting late. Go to the market to buy vegetables. Let’s make more dishes today. Mother has been looking forward to your cooking skills!"

Now Lady Li was full of confidence. "Yes."

Lady Li left the house beaming with joy. She wanted to share the good news with the head of the household.

In the house, Chang Lian’s expression changed as Zhao’s face turned ashen. Zhao’s heart was in turmoil. Was Mother not planning to take the second wife? Her face paled, "Mother."

Zhulan said indifferently, "Go to the kitchen and boil more hot water."

Zhao’s heart grew more fearful, but she dared not ask, "Yes."

She had indeed disappointed her mother-in-law. The goodness shown by the mother-in-law was under the premise that she was still the same Zhao. Since coming to Pingzhou and finding her mother, with more Silver in her hands and being able to embroider screens, she had changed quite a bit. Her own mother had been a servant before, with an inherent fear of officials, and after hearing more from her, she grew increasingly timid. But in the end, it was because she overthought and desired too much.

After Zhao left, Zhulan looked indifferently at Chang Lian, who was standing obediently, and then withdrew her gaze, waiting for Lady Dong to come back.

In the front yard, Lady Li was buzzing like a cheerful bee. "Head of the household, head of the household, Mother said that she would take us to the capital in winter. No matter who else is left behind, she will bring us along."

Zhou Eldest and Zhou Second were cleaning up horse manure at the front gate when both were struck dumb.

Zhou Eldest quickly regained his senses, "Really?"

Lady Li nodded, "Really, Mother herself said it. Don’t you trust Mother’s words?"

Zhou Eldest hastily shook his head; he now believed Mother’s words even if he didn’t trust Father’s. Mother was truly the tough one in the family, grinning, "Well, that’s great, but what about Mingyun?"

Lady Li thought her eldest son was a fool, "Father and Mother will definitely arrange everything well. When have we ever needed to worry about Mingyun’s affairs?"

Her son was the eldest grandson after all. The eunuch even planned to take her son riding today. With that thought, she felt disdain for the head of the household—a position far inferior to Mingyun in the eunuch’s heart.

Zhou Eldest, "....."

Lady Li might have recovered, but she kept stabbing him in the heart without realising it, as if he hadn’t noticed her disdainful look!

Lady Li, beaming, walked away with her basket of vegetables, completely oblivious to the profound impact her words had on Zhou Second. Zhou Second realized that not only did Mother’s words express satisfaction with his elder brother and sister-in-law, but they also implied that Father and Mother could take whoever they wanted with them and could disinherit anyone they wished.

In the back courtyard, Lady Dong finished tidying up the kitchen and returned to the main house. Since her parents-in-law had left, she slowly stopped cleaning the kitchen, always leaving the work to her eldest and second sisters-in-law, even avoiding helping with washing the vegetables.

Having not tidied up in a while, she was somewhat clumsy and slow at it.

Zhulan set down her teacup and spoke to Zhou Shuren, "People have arrived. You speak first!"

Zhou Shuren looked at Chang Lian, "Since you think you’ve grown strong enough to depend on yourself, believing that this family will rely on you in the future, I’ll give you a chance. You don’t have to wait for the days ahead; your family can become independent now. Live your own life and let me see your capabilities, see just how strong your wings really are, how about that?"

Chang Lian’s legs were numb from standing, but he kneeled down swiftly, "Father, I was wrong."

Whatever he said now would be wrong, so it was better to simply admit his mistake without explanation.

Zhou Shuren snorted, "I don’t think you’re wrong. The mistake was mine, for overestimating you. I’m not dead yet. Let me make this clear today: even if I die, this family won’t rely on you. Remember what I’ve said."

He never counted on Chang Lian to support the family in the first place; his intention had always been for Chang Lian to rely on Chang Zhi—his words were not off the mark.

Chang Lian was stunned; it was the first time he heard his father say such things. He had always thought that his father was grooming him for the future of the Zhou family. Looking into his father’s eyes, he knew his father was telling the truth. An endless panic surged in his heart—he truly wasn’t planning to keep him anymore, "Father, Father."

Zhou Shuren snorted again, "Shut up."

Chang Lian quickly sealed his lips, afraid to seek his mother, knowing that it was she who had locked the main gate the other day.

Zhulan cleared her throat, "Regarding our family’s assets: the old house isn’t worth much. The family estate has eighty acres of land, and there’s a residence in Pingzhou. As for the shops, I sold them when we moved to Pingzhou. This time in the capital, we bought three residences: two with good locations and one two-entry property in South City. Your father and I don’t plan to divide the old house among any of you. There are eighty acres of land, twenty per sibling. Your father and I don’t want any, so you’re allocated twenty acres. The property in Pingzhou and one of the residences in the capital are yours."

As for the Silver Coins in hand, sorry, but Zhulan had no intention of dividing them.

Chang Lian shuddered; it was really happening—they were going to split the family, "Father, Mother, I don’t want to split the family. I was wrong, I truly was. Father, Mother, please don’t abandon your son!"

Lady Dong was completely dumbfounded; were her in-laws really planning to split the family? She shuddered at the thought. It wasn’t about the inheritance; if they split a year after she married into the Zhou family, it would damage her reputation. Not splitting any other family members but only theirs would suggest they had made some mistake.

Lady Dong bit her lip. Moreover, her husband didn’t want to split the family; who knows, he might blame her in the future, "Mother, it’s all my fault. I didn’t show proper respect to my elder sister-in-law. I was wrong. Mother, you can punish me however you see fit, just please don’t split us away."